1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to an adjustable pedal assembly of the type attached to an automotive vehicle to control the brake, clutch and/or throttle in normal operation but which can be adjusted to a different position to accommodate a different driver position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An adjustable pedal assembly of the type to which this invention relates typically comprises a mounting bracket for attachment to a vehicle structure for supporting a first pedal lever having an upper end and a lower pad end. A linkage mechanism supports the pedal lever for operative pivotal movement relative to the bracket in a normal operational position to move a connection for a motion transmitting element but also allows the adjustment of the operational position of the pad end relative to the bracket while limiting movement of the element connection relative to the bracket during the adjustment. In other words, the fore and aft position of the pad end of the pedal lever may be adjusted by the supporting linkage mechanism but the motion transmitting element extending to the clutch, brake or throttle must not move during this adjustment. Examples of such linkage mechanisms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,855,143 to Ewing. However, in accordance with the teachings in this patent there is suggestion, other than rudimentary engineering duplication, of adjusting a plurality of pedal levers, particularly pedal levers separated from one another like the separation between the accelerator pedal lever and the brake pedal lever. A multi-pedal lever assembly is disclosed in co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 09/174,748, filed Oct. 19, 1999, which is assigned to the assignee of the subject invention. However, this assembly does not accommodate the separation between pedal levers while remaining efficient in design. More specifically, that prior art assembly requires the operational axes of the multiple pedal levers to be coaxial.